Hansel & Gretel Get Baked

"Hansel & Gretel Get Baked" is horror/comedy directed by Duane Journey which stars Lara Flynn Boyle, Michael Welch, Molly C. Quinn, Edward Zo and Bianca Saad. Actually there are a lot of cool lesser known actors in the film that have some cool moments on screen but for me the story focused more with Lara Flynn Boyle's fun and comfortable portrayal of a stoner witch who eats kids to maintain her youthful beauty. The story is as you would guess a modern day retelling of the classic Grimm story. Quite frankly I cannot believe it took this long to make this sort of movie because it just seems that the pot community and the story of Hansel & Gretel where meant for each other especially as seen in this film. Also don't let the comedy part through you off because this isn't one of those funny flicks that relies heavily on the spoof shtick blatant puns. The humor here only comes from the simple and expected funny sh*t that stoner films are known for. Mostly this film stays with a classic 80's homage horror theme complete with gory effects, creepy build-ups and dark chilling overtures.

The story is simple and interesting leading into this sticky, gooey tale of a witch that lures children into her home so that she may eat them. Only this witch is the kind that you would really want to get high with and Lara Flynn Boyle plays the part perfectly. The slight nuances and interactions between her and other characters made it obvious that she enjoyed playing this role. The characters of Hansel and Gretel are also pretty believable on screen. The story manages to be witty and smart with plenty of representations from the classic fairy tale present but in a very fresh concept. I mean seriously it seems as if this story should have been a no brainer years ago. I have to say if anyone dares to see any movie with "Hansel & Gretel" in the title make it this one! It manages to be a fun original spin on the concept without seeming hokey, plus the elements of horror are far more impressing than you may expect. It manages to use a darker wicked humor which brought the funny without the ridiculous. I plan to add this flick to my 4.20 celebration as the final piece on my day of horror to get high with!

A witch (Lara Flynn Boyle) is living in a mansion in Pasadena, California, making potent marijuana in her basement and preying on the local stoners. Molly Quinn & Michael Welch play the titular siblings who investigate, along with a Latina friend (Bianca Saad).

"Hansel & Gretel Get Baked" (2013) is an amusingly horrific take on the German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, envisioning events in the modern day with the witch preying on potheads. Witch-themed films were trendy at the time and this flick took advantage of the contemporaneous big budget "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" (2013), as did a few other mockbusters: "Witchslayer Gretl" (2012), The Asylum's "Hansel & Gretel" (2013) and Lionsgate's "Hansel & Gretel: Warriors of Witchcraft" (2013).

While it's not in the same league as the kick-axx "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters," it's amusing enough in its one-dimensional scope. Ultra-cute Molly is a highlight and worth the price of admission while Flynn Boyle hams it up as the perversely ee-vil sorceress. There's a nice balance of amusement and horror.

The film runs 1 hour, 26 minutes and was shot in Los Angeles.

GRADE: B-

The pothead Ashton Crawford (Andrew James Allen) and his girlfriend Gretel (Molly Quinn) are smoking in her room special marijuana called Black Forest supplied by the drug dealer Manny (Eddy Martin) and produced by an old lady named Agnes (Lara Flynn Boyle) that lives in Pasadena. Gretel's brother Hansel (Michael Welch) arrives home and Gretel tells that she will bake gingerbread cookie while Ashton will go directly to Agnes to buy more Black Forest. However Agnes is a witch and captures Ash to eat his flesh and drain his youth to maintain youth.

Gretel seeks her boyfriend out and suspects of Agnes, but the police officers Ritter (Lochlyn Munro) and Hart (Yancy Butler) do not give credit to her words since Ritter knows that Ash is a pothead. Meanwhile the gang that supplies weed to Manny learns that he is selling Black Forest to his costumers and they threaten him and their leader Jorge (Joe Ordaz) sends a message to Agnes through Manny. However, the drug dealer is turned into a zombie by Agnes and Jorge and his gang pay a visit to her and are also turned into zombies. Soon Gretel and Manny's girlfriend Bianca (Bianca Saad) decide to break into Agnes' house and they learn that she is a powerful witch. Meanwhile Hansel goes to Agnes 's house to look for his sister.

"Hansel & Gretel Get Baked" is a horror dark comedy about a group of potheads and a group of drug dealers that have their lives entwined with a witch that sells weed. The politically incorrect theme might be funnier for teenage potheads but the plot is funny and the situations works reasonably well. I did not recognize Lara Flynn Boyle, one of the most gorgeous actresses until the turn of the century and now with a totally deformed face by plastic surgery the same way Melanie Griffith and Meg Ryan did. Now she is the witch without make-up. Time is cruel for everybody but it seems to be crueler for those that try to keep beauty and youth at any cost. I have also not recognized the beautiful Yancy Butler, but she is aging with dignity. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "João, Maria e a Bruxa Da Floresta Negra" ("John, Mary and the Witch of the Black Forest")

A brother (Michael Welch) and sister (Molly Quinn) battle a witch (Lara Flynn Boyle) who lures teenagers into her suburban home with her special blend of marijuana where she then proceeds to kill and eat them to maintain her youth and beauty.

I was mildly drawn to this title by the cast, and then further encouraged by Aaron Christensen's review calling this a "spliff riff" and giving it modest comments. Frankly, with this sort of concept, anything better than complete rubbish is all we can ask for... and this definitely ranks above anything in Full Moon's "Evil Bong" series.

Some things about the film are terrible. Well, okay, many things. The lack of plot, the lack of humor, the weird subplot about the witch being a Nazi refugee that never seems to even get addressed... nor do we find out why she is involved in the marijuana business in the first place...

It was great to see Cary Elwes in a cameo (even if he does not get a credit on IMDb for some reason). And it is nice to see Michael Welch branching out (we had another horror, "Demented", released about the same time). Unfortunately, this can only be seen as a step down for Lara Flynn Boyle... are her days on red carpet over?

I am impressed that I made it through the entire movie. The sad part is that I think want kept me watching was Lara Flynn Boyle's face. I can't figure out if she got some kind of illness or if she just went crazy with the plastic surgery, but either way, its sad and hard to stop staring. Back to the crapfest of a movie, about an old lady who lures teenagers to her house by selling them weed and then of course, she kills and eats them to regain her youth. This movie was a total snooze fest. I thought it was going to be funny, it wasn't. I also thought it might be a little scary, not even a little. Definitely pass on this on unless you're curious to see Lara's new face.